Work from home job? Business? How do you decide?
It's a big decision to stay home with your family, rather than
continue in a traditional job outside the home. There are many
choices you must make if you decide to work from home, and many
pitfalls to avoid.
The first things to look at are your skills and interests.
Working from home is in some ways more difficult than working
outside the home (but more fun, since you don't have to leave
your children), so do what you love if at all possible.
Next, decide if you are interested in a job or a business. You
will need to consider the hours you want to work as well. Many
jobs need you during traditional business hours; others allow
you to work your own. Likewise, many home businesses need
regular hours, others, such as party plans, require a great deal
of evening and weekend work.
Consider how much money you can invest. If you want a work at
home job, you should not have to pay to get the job itself, but
some do have other investments required. For example, in
addition to running my website, I do medical transcription. This
required that I get appropriate reference books, and I rent a
Dictaphone from my employer. Do not pay to get the job under any
circumstance. Just remember that you wouldn't pay for a
traditional outside the home job. Businesses, on the other hand,
often require some sort of investment, depending on the kind of
business. Some may even have monthly costs, such as for websites
or supplies. Know what you can afford.
Think about how much interaction with other people you want. If
you're not interested in telling everyone you meet about what
you do, a business may not be for you, particularly if you have
to sell things in person.
Take a look around your home and figure out what you can use for
office space. You will need a place you can keep all your
business supplies and work in relative peace. Remember, if you
take a job taking calls, most employers require that you not
have children yelling in the background. Even if you can have
your kids around, you will get more done in a peaceful
environment.
Become familiar with the various resources to determine if an
opportunity is legitimate. Some good ones are
http://www.wahm.com, http://www.homewiththekids.com,
http://www.ripoffreport.com, http://www.bbb.org, and
http://www.ftc.gov.
Find out if you need to take any special classes for your job.
Once again using medical transcription as an example, I had to
study for months in order to be qualified for this job. Good
medical transcription courses can run from several hundred to a
few thousand dollars.
Talk to your family about your plans. Make sure you will have
their support. A lack of support is an easy way to fail.
If you choose a business, you will have to decide whether to
strike out on your own or join an existing one. There are many
excellent opportunities either way. You can join a party plan
and have regular time away from your family, which many work
from home parents need or sell products or services online.
Be aware of any legal issues facing your home job or business.
Some cities still do not allow home businesses, and you may have
to ask for a variance. Many will require some sort of license,
depending on the kind of business you are starting. Check with
your local city hall.
Whatever you decide to do in the end, whether work a home job or
a business, make sure to network with other work at home
parents. They will understand the issues you are dealing with
even if what they are doing is different.